Wagon-tongue



No'ModeLj' J. T. KETOHLEDGE.

. WAGON TONGUE.

No. 413,256. Patented 0011.22, 1889.

Wifgzsses I lgazgiiz'm u. PETER$, Phmolilhogrzpher, Wahingtcfl, n, c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES T. KETCHLEDGE, OF TUNKHANNOCK, PENNSYLVANIA.

WAGON-TONGUE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 413,256, dated October 22, 1889-.

Application filed July 22, 1889. Serial No. 318,238. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J AMES T. KETCHLEDGE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Tunkhannock, in the county of Wyoming and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Wagon-Tongue, of which the following is a Specification.

The invention relates to improvements in wagon-tongues.

The object of the present invention is to provide a wagontongue of simple and inexpensive construction capable of having its -thill-irons readily adjusted to suit any vehicle.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, pointed out 'in the claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings,-Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tongue constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a reverse plan view.

Referring to the accompanying drawings by letter, A design ates the tongue, of o rdinary construction, having secured to its rear end a curved cross-bar B. Secured to the sides of the tongue and the cross-bar are the bracerods 0, which are provided with the flattened portion 0, through which are passed bolts, by means of which the brace-rods are secured in place. The rear ends ofthe brace-rods are bent around the cross-bar B approximately at right angles to the tongue, to provide bars 0 upon which the thill-irons are adjusted. The thill-irons are curved, and provided attheir forward ends with sleeves d, which slide upon the bars ciwhereby the thill-irons D may be adjusted to adapt the tongue to any vehicle. In order to secure the thill-irons at any desired position along the bars 0 the sleeves are provided in their rear faces, which are somewhat slightly thickened, with set-screws d, which engage the bars 0. The bars 0 may be of any desired configuration; but they are preferably rectangular in cross-section, or some similar form which will present a good surface for the set-screws to engage. The thill-irons are curved in order to give them a greater sweep, and are reversible, whereby they are adapted for a thill-coupling which is located a considerable distance from either end of the bars 0 The ends of the bars 0 are shouldered and screw-threaded,

and are provided with nuts d which secure in place stay-rods E, which have eyes or open ings'e formed at their ends, the forward ones of which are bolted to the cross-bars B. The stays E securely brace the bars 0 and prevent them being bent away from their normal position. The brace-rods O are provided intermediate of their ends with curved arms 0 which are bolted to the tongueA just forward of its connection to the cross-bar. The upper face of the tongue and cross-bar is provided with the T-shaped plate F, which is bolted to the tongue and the crossbar, and is provided at its forward end with a curved bar f, which extends upward and is provided with an eye, through which passes the bolt that secures the whiiiletree to the tongue. The lower face of the cross-bar and tongue is provided with a re-enforcing baseplate G, which conforms to the configuration of the part and extends along the entire lower surface of the cross-bar and is bolted at intervals thereto, the bolts of the re-enforcing base-plate passing through the bar and tongue and serving to secure the plate F.

From the foregoing description and the accompanyin g drawings it will readily be seen that tongues constructed in accordance with this invention are simple, strong, durable, and comparatively inexpensive, and are capable of having their thill-irons adjusted to suit any vehicle.

Having described my invention, What I claim is- The combination, with the curved thill-irons provided with sleeves, of the tongue, the cross-bar, the brace-rods secured to the tongue and the cross-bar and having their ends. extending around the rear of the cross-bar and threaded, the curved stay-irons having perforated ends, each of said stay-irons having one of its ends bolted to the cross-bar and its other end receiving the threaded end of the brace-rod, and nuts for securing the stayirons to the brace-rods, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses. 

